Kansas University senior Aaron Miles sat Dec. 22 in a Kemper Arena locker room when it was announced in the arena that he had overtaken Doug Gottlieb as the Big 12 Conference’s all-time assist leader.
The acknowledgment drew a healthy dose of applause from 17,843 fans, who were coming and going from the concessions stands, during intermission of KU’s game against Wisconsin-Milwaukee.
The reception figures to be a lot louder Saturday afternoon at Allen Fieldhouse (1:30 p.m., ESPN) if and when KU’s 6-foot-1 floor general records his fifth assist against Georgia Tech and overtakes Jacque Vaughn as KU’s all-time dish leader.
“I certainly hope the crowd acknowledges it if indeed he does get it,” KU coach Bill Self said. “It’d be a great feat. I don’t think we’d stop the game or give Aaron the basketball. I don’t think Aaron would want to do that. But certainly he’ll be recognized.
“We’ll have a much better chance of winning if Aaron gets a lot of assists,” Self added, referring to the game between No. 2-ranked Jayhawks (8-0) and No. 9 Yellow Jackets (9-1).
Defeating Georgia Tech, a squad that knocked KU out of last year’s NCAA Tournament, is the only thing on Miles’ mind this week. A modest guy, he grows uncomfortable discussing personal achievements.
“I’ve gotten five assists in plenty of games. That’s nothing special,” Miles said of what could be in store Saturday. “It’s like the Big 12 record. Right now I don’t think about that. Everybody when I went home (to Portland) for Christmas was congratulating me.
“I don’t think about it now. In years to come I’ll appreciate it more.”
A year ago, Miles guarded Tech’s Jarrett Jack, who scored 29 points off 8-of-12 shooting in Tech’s 79-71 Elite Eight win over the Jayhawks. He could be guarding the 6-foot-3 Jack and/or the 6-0 Will Bynum on Saturday.
“He’s a good guard,” Miles said of Jack, who hit 13 of 14 free throws against the Jayhawks and also had nine rebounds and six assists. Miles tallied 11 points with six assists and Bynum eight points and an assist. “They’ve got a lot of good players. They’ve got a really good team.”
Of the point guard matchup, Self said: “I hope our guys are looking forward to playing Tech’s guys. I’m sure they (Miles and Jack) will be matched against each other. I don’t know how much with different lineups.
“Jack is a competitive guy,” Self added. “He was able to get to the paint whenever he wanted. We’ll have to correct that.”
Tech coach Paul Hewitt is a fan of Miles.
“You look at Aaron’s assist to turnover ratio … very impressive,” Hewitt said of Miles, who averages 8.5 points and 6.3 assists per game. Jack averages 13.1 points and 4.9 assists and Bynum 11.4 points and 2.9 assists.
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Silent night at Self’s: KU’s coach will be spending a quiet New Year’s Eve tonight.
“I will probably make it to midnight,” he said. “Not past that. We’ll have a team dinner, a small function. After dinner, we’ll get the guys to bed.”
Self is hoping KU’s fans get a good night’s sleep and are ready to rock the building Saturday.
“I’m really looking forward to this. I know our fans will be jacked. This will be a great atmosphere. I think we’ll see Jan. 1 just how special Allen Fieldhouse can be,” said Self.
ESPN’s Dick Vitale will be working the game as color announcer to Dan Shulman.
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Chalmers excels: KU signee Mario Chalmers, a 6-1 point guard from Anchorage, scored 30 points off 10-of-16 shooting Thursday in Bartlett High’s 69-64 win over Myrtle Beach (S.C.) at the Beach Ball Classic in South Carolina. He hit three of eight threes and had seven rebounds and four assists in 30 minutes.
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Miles’ focus? Georgia Tech
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